Rockin' Down the House
by Ranchero D
Summary: Kim has a dilemma, and asks friends to help. This story is my one tribute to the many talented writers whom I've 'met' through their art posted on this great site. My discovering Captainkodak1 started it all. Enjoy and review.
1. Chapter 1

Hiya, noble reader. If you happened to come across this little fic, welcome. My name is Dave, and I never intended to write anything to contribute to FF. I have been reading and reviewing on the site for months now, and I continue to be blown away by the sheer artistry of the folks that contribute here.

This (first? Who knows?) story is a tribute to the creators of these stories I have managed to read so far, and to the creators and crew of the show. If you'd like, check out my profile as well. It's a fun read, too…

The standard disclaimer seems to fit well here.

I don't own any of the characters Mark and Bob have spawned, or have any affiliation with Disney Productions in any way. Nor do I own any copyright for any of the characters that I have created. I DO own this little story, but if you want to use names I have created here, be my guest. I would only be flattered.

Onwards…

RD

"Rockin' Down the House" by Ranchero D

Chapter I

It was again time to put together some sort of celebration for their wedding anniversary, and Kim Stoppable was actually struggling to come up with ideas. Three years married already, and the first two anniversary celebrations were sure going to be hard to top.

Kim thought back to the first; Junior and Shego had actually sprung for a trip to Bora-Bora for them, with a brief stop in Tahiti. Must have been Shego's idea, she always did like tropical locales, and the beaches and the climate were perfect for romantic evenings on the beach. It sure did the trick for them. They were married there after Junior told Shego he had fallen madly in love with her while she had Miss Bunny's former job of tutoring him… even if she hadn't done his homework for him…

…Or maybe she had

Ron had done a lot of 'marinating' during the days in the sun, but the nights belonged to Kim.

Even Junior's father, the old triple S himself, had given his blessings from Bueno Nacho corporate.

After the drama with Drakken and the Diablos, and SSS had been released on parole, Senior bought out Drakken, who went to prison for life with the help of Shego's testimony. He had rebuilt the company with Ron's help, and a few 'bendie-straws'. He was doing quite well for himself after giving up the villain game, having grown bored with trying to take over the world. He kept himself very busy attempting to rebuild his 'requisite billions', whatever _that_ meant.

For the second, Pop-Pop Porter had set them up with an all expense paid trip around the world. Much to Kim's chagrin, though, was that Pop-Pop had set the transportation the two would use to be that huge shrimp balloon that Adrena-Lynn had used to do that stupid phony stunt where she pretended to bungee jump out of it. Mr. Porter was especially happy to do it when Benny, the former accountant from Defteen Records, told him it would also be an advertising tax write-off. Talk about a left-handed gift, but Kim forced herself to be gracious.

Never the less, Ron _did_ seemed to be thrilled about riding in it, _and _the fact that he and Rufus got a full supply of the famous flash-frozen mini corn dogs that she just refused to eat. All THAT succeeded in doing was making Ron 'crummy in the tummy' somewhere over Paris. Awkweird thing there, Francois was almost hit…

Good thing he didn't want to bring suit like that poor clown in Middleton did.

While sitting in her kitchen, trying to relax for the moment, she was actually dreading having to come up with something that could best that special night at the prom, and all the wonderful times she and Ron had spent together after their missions before they were wed. _And _the anniversaries gone by? Besides…

She was fast running out of time.

Kim's new 'Mom' ears suddenly picked up a muffled cry coming from the living room.

She stepped from the kitchen into the living room of their modest home, bending over the bassinet she had put the twins down in for a nap. She bent down and picked up the beautiful blond haired girl, who was putting up a little fuss. A tiny red headed boy was curled up sleeping in the other section of the double bassinet that Francis Lurman had sent.

'Frugal Lucre' indeed… Kim was impressed that Francis had actually paid full pop for it, since he was banned for life from Smarty Mart.

"Oh, my, STINKY-POO, Amber, _somebody _needs a new diaper. Let's see if we can get this gorchy thing changed before we wake up your little brother" she quietly cooed to her armful of love.

Kim slowly and silently started to tiptoe into the downstairs bathroom to use the changing table she and Ron had received from Big Mike and the gang for her baby shower. Kim had found out that they were actually going to throw in together for a couple of kegs of beer for the party, but Mike's mother, Big Rhonda, thankfully found out about this, and immediately put the 'Kibosh' on that idea.

Kim could actually visualize what Tara had told her she saw in Middleton mall that day;

Big Mike himself being led up the parking escalator by the EAR, with Rhonda muttering and scowling to herself all the way. She marched him quick-time right to the door of "Baby Guess Who" and twirled him into the doorway saying "You march yourself right in there and get that young lady a right and proper PRESENT, young man."

Tara said she then saw Mike tuck his chin into his enormous chest and mumble "Yes, maw" as he ambled into the store.

Kim had to stifle a laugh at the memory, her face turning a little crimson. She _didn't w_ant to wake up Jason and have to juggle the two armfuls of wriggling babies. She made it to the changing table and started to unwrap her little gift from heaven. Kim recoiled in mock horror at the sight.

And the pungent AROMA…

"My gosh, Amber Elizabeth, has your father been feeding you two that horrid brain loaf, or what? AWWW, it's all right, sweetie. Mommy will get you allll cleaned up, and don't you worry."

Kim finished up with a fine powdering, and a fresh new diaper from the huge dispenser Dr. Director was so kind to have brought as a gift. Seemed being the head of Global Justice had its advantages, as Betty had supplied the twins with not only the dispenser, but arranged to have as many diapers as Kim would need over the next few years delivered to her door on a regular basis. Kim was _ever_ so grateful for THAT one over these last few months.

Kim picked up Amber and headed back to the bassinet. Wouldn't you know, just as she was passing the phone in the hallway, it happened to ring. She bent down and checked the caller ID display. It was the number for Ron's studio.

"Hi, honey, just wanted to check in and see how my family's doing" Ron said over the sound of what sounded like a jackhammer and a chain saw going on in the background.

"Wanted to give you some Bon-diggety news tonight, but I just couldn't wait to tell you. The network has finalized the new contract for the show, and Roland has ok'd every codicil of it. He's really sharpened up after that 'Oh Boyz' sitch, and Rufus made him look so bad. Looks like "The Ron" is going to run for another 3 years, Kim. We got it made in the shade, babe. BOO-YAH!"

"Ron, is that construction going on in the back? I can barely hear you."

"Yup, part of the contract the network insisted on is expanding to an hour, Kim. The execs are so thrilled at the ratings; they actually sprung for a new set, including a small stage. They want to include a few variety acts and entertainment to the show. This should put the ratings through the roof."

Kim overheard somebody yell Ron's name.

"Aw, gotta go, Kimmie. Vinnie wants to do a lighting check, and he can't do it proper without _me_, can he?" Ron snickered a little, and then said "I love you and our babies with all my heart and soul, babe. I'll be home in time for dinner" and hung up after a kiss into the phone.

Kim was a little perturbed that it seemed she couldn't get a word in edgewise to congratulate Ron, but she knew how he was when he got so excited.

Kim hung up the phone, and readjusted Amber on her hip so she could free up a space for her in the playpen. Kim sighed, it seemed the twin's gifts had come in from all over the world, and she remembered; they had. The house was piled high in every corner when Kim was brought home from delivery at Middleton General. Toys from Switzerland, Sweden, Germany, Africa, Asia, Wisconsin… from every corner of the world.

There was even a gift from that old gruffball Duff Killagan; a matching set of baby's tartan kilts. Ron had THAT one checked out completely, but they were the genuine article. Who would have thought _that _would happen?

Kim thought back at all the missions she and Ron had performed all over the globe. They never asked for any kind of compensation for saving the world time and time again, but the gifts for the family had come from every country and continent. There were so many presents Kim and Ron had held a press conference that was beamed to the UN general assembly, and all over the globe, thanking everyone for their gifts and blessings. She announced that they had received so much, from so many, that Dr. Director and Global Justice, with the help of the United Nations, will distribute what they could not immediately use to the less fortunate children of the world.

The assembly had, in one of the few times in its history, unanimously risen to their feet in agreement, giving a standing ovation at this statement.

Kim put Amber down in the playpen, glad that Jason hadn't awakened from his nap yet. She walked over to the far side of the living room and plopped down on Ron's favorite chair, an ugly overstuffed mission-pants green recliner with huge side pockets. She felt something stirring in the left side of the huge chair, and out of the pocket popped Rufus, all bleary-eyed, and with his whiskers all askew. "mmmm, sleepin" Rufus squeaked, and slipped back deep into the folds of the pocket. "Aww, sorry, Rufus, with all this reminiscing, I forgot you were there."

Kim leaned back into the plush chair and leaned back. She was going to enjoy this momentary respite from 'domesticity' for as long as she could. Kim reached over to the arm of the couch, and picked up her Kimmunicator. She pulled out one of the earpieces from it and stuck it in one ear.

Fiddling with the controls, she was scanning through the FM radio dial when she came across an oldies station. A slightly familiar tune was playing in her ear, and she turned up the volume just a tiny bit.

Soon her feet were moving up and down to the beat of the rhythm. Her free hand's fingers started tapping on the mahogany inset on the arm of the chair, and soon she felt her torso was moving back and forth in the big recliner. The song came to the end, and the announcer came on the air.

"That was another great golden oldie. Stay tuned for a commercial break, we'll be right back. This is your faaaavorite oldies station, KMID, Mid-mid-mid-mid-MIDDLETON…"

Kim suddenly sat bolt upright and said "That's _IT._ I GOT it!"

She got up, and headed to the phone.

End of Chapter 1


	2. Chapter II

MMMMM, glad you guys like this little vignette so far, got lots more ideas cookin' in my brain pan. It's expanding nicely, and I'm 'hunting and pecking' as fast as I can.

Chapter II was completed, as far as I was concerned, but before I posted it I wanted to try to fill some gaps. Wound up splitting the chappie. You know how THAT goes…

Sit back and enjoy. Reviews are greatly appreciated.

Standard disclaimer: Nope, I don't own…

Wish I did.

RD

"Rockin' Down the House" by Ranchero D

Chapter II

Kim crept over to the phone in the hall, trying not to wake up the twins. The song she had heard on the local oldies station was still rolling around in her head, lending a little bounce and sway to her steps. "Monique is just going to go nuts for this" Kim whispered to herself. She got to the phone, picked up the receiver on the cordless, and pushed two numbers, then the pound sign.

The receiver buzzed twice, clicked, and a cheery voice announced "Hi, you've reached the domicile of Monique and Felix. We can't take your call at the moment…" a giggle erupted from the phone, and the recording continued "Felix, _stop that, _you know I'm ticklish there… sorry, but we especially can't take your call right now… leave a… FELIX… message, and we'll…" Monique let out a huge squeal, and Kim heard Felix laughing in the background. And then they both chorused...

"We'll get back to you."

Kim waited half a second, and then heard the familiar beep. "Mon, this is Kim. I need your help with something, and would appreciate a call if you two can tear yourselves away from each other for a moment or two. I think you're going to 'me like' this idea. I'll be at home waiting for your call."

Kim clicked the phone off, and went over to pick up the baby monitor receiver. She checked on both of the twins, and went silently into the spare bedroom that Ron was using for his office at home. She sat down at the cluttered desk, and moved some drafts for the new menus Ron was working on for his restaurants.

'The Ron' was emblazoned across the front of a prototype that seemed to be finished. She absently thumbed through the few pages of copy inside. 'Sushi and Nacos' was prominently printed on one corner of the menu. She still couldn't understand how he got away with combining those two types of foods, but it was a hit all over the country for some strange reason.

The other corner was boldly printed: 'For the Ninja on a Health Kick.' It listed much more sensible fare, and was much more to Kim's liking. She silently wished Ron would partake of this side of the menu much more often. She secretly needled him about his diet, and tried to prepare the healthiest food she could for him at home.

She had to admit there were more than a few disasters in their kitchen when she did her best to cook for Ron, but, in the end, he would always come to her rescue.

She still, to this day, was wary of her blender…

She closed the menu, and pushed aside an unfinished grande slurpster. She just had to get Ron to clean up in here. But every time she mentions it, Ron just laughs and says "Kim, a clean desk is a sign of a sick mind" and he shrugs it off.

Kim had to admit, Ron _was _excessively busy. Splitting his time between overseeing the restaurants and taping the show was MAJORLY time consuming. Ron was doing a great job of it. He especially made sure to save time for the family.

Ron always said "Kimmie, my family is number one to me, and always will be."

Once, she had actually done a major cleaning, arranging, and filing of all of his work. The result of _that_ was he had spent over a week hollering out of his office at her;

"Honey, where did you put this?" and "Kimmie, where did you put that?"

Uttering a low growl, she thought back… Kim had sworn to herself; 'Never again will I _touch _his stuff', and hadn't moved anything that remotely looked important again.

Kim fired up the computer, and waited for it to boot. The monitor crackled to life under what seemed to her to be an inch of dust with a couple of spots of soda thrown in. She sighed, and started to type, her attention split between the keyboard and the monitor in her lap.

She typed in the URL for her favorite search engine, and it popped up on screen. She typed in the info she wanted to search for, and several links flashed onto the screen.

Kim double clicked on the first link she came to, a _major _old school R&B and Girl group recording studio that began in the 1950's, but didn't find what she was looking for. It was a huge temptation to dig deeper into this site, but she didn't believe in miracles just then.

Hmmm. No reference there? I wonder why? she thought to herself. She took the laser optical mouse, and clicked on 'back', returning her to the search page. She then clicked on a link referencing the group she was looking for, and said "Bingo."

Kim opened a personal folder, made sure to check that was security coded, and clicked on the link she needed to begin her plan.

She began humming to herself as lyrics were downloaded and stored in the secured folder.

Ohhh, Monique is going to just _love _this, she thought to herself again.

"Wade's right… Research Rocks!" she said out loud.

Just then, the phone rang. Kim saw it was Moniques' number on the display, and picked up the phone. Kim pushed the talk button, and said "Hi, Mon. Girl, do I ever need your assistance with a mission.

There was a slight pause, and Monique replied "Kim, is everything ok? The kids…are they alright? What's happening over there?"

Kim started to tell her best GF about the plan, when she heard the front door slam loudly, and Ron bellow...

"Kim, where are ya, honey?" just about at the top of his lungs.

The instant result of that was the baby monitor let out a screeching wail…

WAAAAAAAH!

In stereo, no less.

Kim hurriedly told Monique "Gad, the monster that is the father of my children just burst into the house like a bull in a china shop. Can you meet me for lunch at the mall tomorrow? I know it's kind of far from Corporate, but can you get away for long enough?"

"Girl, no big… There _are _a few perks from being head of the design and distribution departments. I'll be there just about 12:20 or so, and we can go over this delicious little tidbit in detail.

End of Chapter II

Stay tuned, gang. III's coming soon.

RD


	3. Chapter 3

Rockin' Down the House by Ranchero D

Chapter III

Standard Disclaimer again; I wish I had a claim to these characters, but I don't. I do own this work of fiction, but the Disney Company owns the rights to all the KP gang. I am just a broke KP fan. Please do not sue me.

Enjoy

RD

**Middleton Mall, next day**

…and the clock is ticking.

Sadie III said "Kim, look, there's one over there at 10 'o clock. Shall I grab it for you, or will you manage it in enough time?" "No big, Sadie, I can do anything, remember? Kim deftly cranked the wheel, and almost skidded the big van into the space sideways, rocking to a stop. "Oops, sorry, kids. Had to get that space before anybody else, or we'd have to walk a mile." Kim turned her head and checked on the infants. The twins just cooed and gurgled, Jason having a big grin on his little freckled face.

Sadie said "Way to go, Shirley Muldowney, we almost hit that Caddie next to us. You _have _to be more careful when you have the kids in the car, remember?" Kim sheepishly said "I didn't see that oil spot. I'm sorry, Sadie." The third AI that Dr. Freeman had crafted shifted into reverse, spun the wheel from Kim's hands, dropped the shifter into drive, and adjusted the van into the parking space.

The vans' AI had been carefully programmed by Dr. Freeman with Wade's assistance to be much more cranky and watchful when Kim and the babies were in her. Ron had gotten a great deal from Wacky Wally on both of their vehicles after he had quit selling weather machines because of Drakken and that idiotic attempt to create 'DrakKanada'. Dr. Freeman, of course, kept the original Sadie because he doesn't drive.

Ron had Sadie II installed in his sleek black Mercury Marauder that Motor Ed had supercharged and tricked out to the MAX. Seriously? Seriously. Kim suddenly remembered being covered in red paint…

Seemed an awful long time ago, though.

They had gratefully found a parking spot close to the elevators at Middleton Mall. Sadie popped the doors unlocked, and slid the side door open and raised the rear hatch. Kim unloaded the twins from the mini-van that Ron had gotten her from the local dealer, and put them in the pram that Granny Crockett the Cookie Queen referred to as 'The double-barreled git along that rises the baby on the go to an art form'. Granny's state of the art surveillance system had picked up what she and Ron were saying outside of her bakery that day, and now she used what Ron had said about her cookies in her ads. Josh had suggested he could carefully remove the little stickers that the stroller was peppered with when it arrived, but Ron decided to leave the illustrations of the little cookies on the stickers. Josh had cut away the 'Granny Crockett's' text on the stickers, and Ron thought that they looked cool that way.

The mall seemed to have expanded to a humongous size after Shego had that battle royale with that horrible woman Kara Fang of the Blood Jade. Shego had just about destroyed the mall completely, especially the part where Club Banana had been.

Kim pushed the stroller into the elevator after telling Sadie III "security mode three, Sadie." The van acknowledged by saying "You got it, Kim, I'll keep an eye out for ya" and with a boop-boop sound and a brief flash of her lights, Sadie went into minimum security mode. Kim didn't think it was _even close_ to necessary to go into stage one or even two, which involved force-fields, wrap around titanium flux armor, and even laser cannons in stage one. She hadn't had to use that since she and Ron had retired from the world saving missions last year when they had found out she was expecting. GJ was doing an admirable job of doing what she did miss at times, especially since Team Impossible had successfully been recruited, and Will Du was keeping close tabs on their ops. She also didn't want to draw a crowd wanting to see what was going on, and who was driving this vehicle.

Being mobbed today was just not in her plans.

Kim pushed the button on the shiny panel marked 'Food Court' and the doors whooshed shut.

Kim was sitting at a favorite table overlooking the newer wing of the mall, the stroller by her side. She glanced at her watch, and noticed it was a little after 12:20 pm. Mon was usually never late, and Kim started to get concerned when she spotted Monique silently gliding up the escalator. Monique spotted Kim, too, and gave a big overhead wave. The beautiful dark brown eyed young woman walked over to the table quickly, her hair bouncing as she walked. Kim noticed she was decked out in one of the most gorgeous power suits she had ever seen, a beautiful azure blue affair that accentuated every curve of her body, but also said;

'Don't mess with me'…

Loud and clear.

Monique gave Kim a quick hug, and said "Girlfriend, it's been just too _long_ since I've seen you. Must be weeks now." Mon then turned, bent down to the carriage and exclaimed "And how are you, Amber, and you, Jason Marc? Aren't you just the most _beautiful_ babies in the whole wide world? Yes, you are, yes, you_ are!_" while tickling both under their chubby chins. Turning back to her best GF, Monique slid into the chair beside Kim and said "Sorry I'm a teensy bit late, but I wanted to see the new Manager of our store here for just a sec. Had to give her an update on my new line of sportswear, and before you say anything, NO, it's not based on your mission gear again…

MMM, well, on second thought, maybe you _might _see just a little influence there.

Monique leaned forward in her chair, getting on a serious face for a moment, and asked "Well, what's the problem ya got, Mrs. Stoppable?"

"Mon, I was worried about what to do for our anniversary that's coming up. I came up with a solution that I hope you'll like, and I need you to be involved in it. Very involved, matter of fact." Moniques' eyebrows started to rise, and Kim realized she was starting to get the wrong idea. "Whoa, girl, I don't mean anything bad. I just need you to sing."

The beautiful ebony complected exec rocked back in her chair, a shocked look blooming on her face. "Sing?" **_"Moi?"_**

"Kim, I'd try to go into battle with you, I'll dodge exploding golf balls and run from Monkey Masters for ya, even sit with the kids, but you want me to _sing? _I can even go from manager of a CB store to district manager in nothing flat, but sing? Where? In public? Don't know about that one…"

Kim started to do her patented 'puppy-dog pout'.

She had actually had a wonderful visit with her parents while she was about 6 months pregnant, and her Mom had set her down and told her "Kimmie, the pout is a wonderful weapon to use when you want something or need something badly. We're going to sit and perfect this, so you can use it on Ron… And, eventually, your children. I've seen you use your version several times, and I want to buff it up just a bit. Just don't tell your father about this. It still seems to work for _me_, and I don't want that ruined. You understand, don't you?" Kim started to complain that she thought she had it down perfectly, but Mrs.Dr.P said "There's always room for improvement, sweetie."

They had a fun filled couple of hours over ice cold glasses of cocoa-moo.

Monique pondered for a moment, and finally said "Well, I can sure try for you. Might even be fun, but I make no guarantees."

"That's all I ask, Mon." The lifelong BF's pinky-shook on it, and Kim excitedly started to tell Monique about the rest of the plan.

**Next Morning**

Kim was at home busily tidying up because she was expecting company this morning. She had just tidied up the kitchen after a sumptuous breakfast they had prepared to extend the little celebration from last night for Ron's new contract. Ron had just left to go to his main office downtown to check in, and then he had to return to the studio. He was going to be gone all day.

She was setting the controls of the miniature version of the 3000LXS the Canadian super agent 'Joe' had let her keep after that mission. Joe had dubbed the little floor scrubber/vacuum the 'Vacrometer', not wanting Kim know she was being set up and trained in secret to foil Drakken once again. He _had_ tried to keep his identity a secret, but it didn't work out that way. After the mission, he had his labs convert the efficient little machine to do its job in the janitorial way.

Kim pushed the start button on the remote, and the machine gave a little 'putt-putt-sputter-COUGH' and fell silent. Kim bent down and sighed. "Good thing Joe sent the complete blueprints and instructions for this thing." She knew from the sputtering sounds it made on startup that the filter compression tank was full again. She popped off the tank, checked over the gear-shifting transmuter, went into the kitchen, and dumped the contents of the tank into the trash.

Fitting the tank neatly back into the machine, Kim decided to re-set the parameters for the automatic cleaner to include Ron's office, silently hoping to herself that he hadn't left anything of major importance on the floor. Satisfied that it would fire up now, Kim pressed the start button. The Vac hummed to life smoothly, and took off on its mission to destroy dirt.

Kim started back toward the twins when the doorbell chimed;'Bong-Bong-Be-Bong'.

"Spankin', there _here._"

Kim opened the door with a flourish.

End of Chapter III


	4. Chapter IV

Disclaimer: Nope, no new developments as of yet. The owners of Disney _still_ haven't called me and offered me the rights to the show. Dang! They still own everything, lock, stock, and barrel. This is a tribute to the show Kim Possible, its creators, Bob and Mark, the animation crew that puts this wonderful show together, and all of you denizens in the dark that write about KP in so many ways. Hats off to you all!

RD

**Rockin' Down the House**

Chapter IV

Spankin'. They're _here._

Kim opened the door with a flourish.

After a moment or two of her eyes adjusting to the brilliant Colorado sunlight outside, she focused on what she suddenly thought for a second might be a group wishing her and her family harm. Kim then immediately recognized the uniforms of the group she secretly feared worst of all, and suddenly her thoughts were confirmed. A group of short figures was standing all about her front porch, all holding containers of noxious materials, and a huge hulk of a man was looming in back of the pack.

Black and gold uniforms started milling about, and came to attack formation. A lone figure stepped forward and said… "Ma'am, we were wondering if you would be interested in purchasing some delicious…" all the time smiling like the innocent young girl that she was.

…"Pixie Muffins" Kim finished with a small sigh.

Kim glanced back over the small sea of beret wearing young ladies. 'Brigadier' Barkin was trying to shoot Kim a huge, toothy grin, his right arm going up towards his head. Barkin had one finger hooked into the collar of his shirt, starting at the back, and moving it towards where his uniform tie was neatly knotted. He was trying to pull the material away from his sweat soaked neck, showing he _knew_ this was, at the very least, going to be a hard sell.

The small salespixie continued; "We have all the usual flavors, Ma'am, plus some new ones we're trying. Mango-Tango, Spice is Nice, and a really new flavor that hasn't been officially named yet, but Brigadier Barkin calls it "The mystery meat gravy flavor"…

Why, we don't understand, but…

Kim then noticed Barkin throwing up both hands, moving them back and forth in front of his massive chest in a blur, trying to get the young girls' attention. He then saw Kim glaring at him, and he began to rock back and forth on his heels and toes, his eyes searching the sky for anything that would get him out of _this_ one. He put his left arm up to his head again, pushed his beret to the back of his head, rolled his eyes to the sky again, and started whistling.

As Kim started to protest that she didn't want to buy any muffins today, she felt something brush her shoe, and pass between her legs. She looked down, and saw Rufus sitting there, waving a few bills in his front claws. "mmmm, MUFFINS!" He swiveled his head back and up, looked up at Kim. "S' okay?" he said, with a pleading look on his face. Kim sighed once again, and said "Okay, just don't go crazy like last time." Rufus skittered over to one of the girls, and jumped into one of the heavy bags. Diving deep, the bag started to undulate wildly, and he popped his head out, holding a bag of his Pixie's favorite. "Crunchy Cherry, uh-huh uh-huh. Three cases, three cases, and pleeeze" he chirped. He then jumped out of the bag, turned, and ran back into the house, clutching his prize in his teeth.

Much to the delight of the pack, Kim caved. "All right, you guys. I'll take a case of the Oat-Bran, please." She reached into her pocket, and produced the correct amount.

As she bent down to give the Pixie the bills, she shot "Brigadier Barkin" a laser-like glance. She knew he got the message loud and clear when he shouted the order "Listen up, people. We now move to Upperton… and re-invade the territory of 'that other' troop." "Atten-HUT." Kim heard the snap of young heels coming together. "Abouuuut FACE." The troop wheeled about in unison in grand military style. "MARCH!" With that, the entire entourage marched down the winding sidewalk. Kim watched them leave, then noticed, down the street, a gleaming limo as it did a long turn around the corner, sidled up to the curb, and came to a silky stop in front of her house.

The uniformed driver stepped out from the driver's door in front and hustled to the rear door on the curb side. He grabbed the handle to the door, and smoothly opened it. Out of the dark interior Kim saw a long leg extend into the sunshine, followed by another alabaster complected one. As the feet hit the curb, the chauffeur extended a hand and assisted the rest of the young lady from the car. "Thank you, George" the blonde said.

Kim briskly walked over to the gleaming ride and almost squealed "Tara, you _made _it! I didn't think you were going to be able to catch a flight so quickly. I'm sooooo glad you're here. This is gonna be a lot of fun." Tara gave Kim a solid hug, not having seen Kim or Ron for at least a year.

Monique also stepped out of the long limo, again assisted by the impeccably uniformed driver. Monique told her driver "George, we're going to be at least 3 or 4 hours, take lunch and relax. You can do as you please, just be close by after that time period. I'll get you on the company direct connect for pickup, Okay? "Yes, Ms. De la Croix" the driver replied, and closed the door. George snapped to, wheeled, and got into the limo which then smoothly started off. Kim glanced at the back of the car, and noticed the number plate as it glided down the block… CB 3. Kim took Monique's hand in greeting, and said "Nice new ride, Mon. Noticed the plate, too. CB _three_?" The young exec just shrugged while smiling a 'cat got the canary' smile and replied "Just give it a little time… workin' on it, ya know."

Kim had to give credit when credit was due. Monique was the youngest corporate exec that Middleton High had produced. Matter of fact, she was the youngest in the state. Kim had no doubt that Monique was set for life.

Tara, on the other hand, while marginally successful, had taken a more perilous road in her career.

"Let's get inside, we got a lot of work to do" Kim said. "I can hardly wait to see the twins, let's go go go" Tara said, her eyes wide and sparkling. The trio walked up the winding sidewalk to the house, and stepped through the doorway. Rufus was at the playpen playing 'hide and seek' with the giggling babies. He'd run to one side of the playpen and hide behind a blanket draped over one edge, then peek around the edge of the blanket, look at the wide-eyed infants, and chitter "Boo yoo too." He'd then wriggle under the playpen to the other side and pop out from under it, grab the netting, pull himself up far enough to see the delighted kids, and repeat "Boo you too", sometimes adding an extra 'too' for emphasis. The kids never seemed to grow tired of this game, Amber's brown eyes always darting about looking for Rufus, and Jason's green ones were always full of exploration. Kim didn't mind letting Rufus keep an eye on the twins for a short time, she trusted him to protect them with his life if need be. After all, she _had_ trusted him with her own life on many occasions. Rufus would try to keep up the game for as long as he could, trying to wear the babies out. Eventually Rufus would collapse on his back and wheeze "No more." The kids won every time, much to their squealing, bouncing delight. This round of their game was no exception.

The trio walked into the living room and Tara rushed over to the playpen, quickly saying 'Hi' to Rufus with a tickle on his tummy. Rufus gave a tired "mmmm Hi, gotta go sleepin" to Tara, and with that, slowly walked on all fours over to Ron's recliner and climbed into the large pocket. Before he snuggled in, he gave a wave to Monique and said "'Night, Moneek. Monique waved back and said "See you later, Rufus" and Rufus was quickly out like a light.

Tara walked over and bent over the edge of what Ron jokingly called 'The Restraining Field'. Kim stepped over beside her, her facial expression beaming at the inquisitive look on the face of one of her favorite former cheerleading teammates. Kim was VERY proud of her new offspring.

"Kim, they're the most beautiful babies I've ever seen. You've just _got_ to bring them out to the coast. I know a few people that could get them work in commercials, maybe even in a TV show or two. I can make some calls today, and get the ball rolling for you."

Kim replied "Whoa, Miss Hollywood, just a minute. I'm just getting used to the idea of having the kids, and getting settled into the house. We don't need to be traipsing halfway across the country just yet. Thank you, but no. I love that you think they're beautiful, but I want to keep them just my little love-bugs for now. "Can I hold them? Tara asked.

"Sure, no big." Kim reached down into the pen, and picked up Amber. She asked Tara "OK, probably a dumb question, but have you held a baby before? Tara scrunched her eyebrows together at Kim and said "Sure, remember we used to split shifts when we were baby-sitting, right? Kim had forgotten she would fill in for Tara if something came up she needed to attend to. It had come in handy vice-versa when Kim had been called on emergency missions early in her crime fighting career.

Kim handed Amber over to Tara, who cradled the baby in her arms as carefully as she could. Tara cooed to Amber, tickling her tummy and just fussing like crazy to the smiling infant. Amber gurgled back to her with a huge little smile, and Kim said "Want to try for two? It's something you won't soon forget." Tara thought for a moment, and replied "Sure, let's go for it. You don't get to hold twins that often, do ya?" Kim bent down to Jason, who seemed to be reaching for his mother anyway. Kim noticed the tell-tale smile on her baby boy's face, gave a quick sniff at the air, and decided he was good to go.

She picked up the wriggling baby, and held and rocked him in her arms for a few moments to calm him down. She turned to Tara, and with a circus announcer type voice, softly said "Laaadieees annnd Gentlemennnn, presenting Tara King, world famous baby juggler, about to perform the most dazzling trick of allll… holding two babies at once! Monique was standing off to the other side of the playpen, watching all of this happening. She looked like she was doing her best to stifle a roaring laugh, but she didn't want to embarrass the actress by laughing. Not just yet, anyway.

Kim had calmed the little redhead down enough to hand him over. Tara had skillfully shifted the female twin to the crook of her right arm, getting the balance of the blonde girl _just_ right.

Kim carefully fit Jason into Tara's left arm, holding onto Jason for a second, just in case. Kim then had a quick thought, and turned to Monique. "Monique, got a good idea. This _should_ be a Kodak moment, let's get a pic of this. There's a camera in the dining room in the left top drawer of the antique credenza Nana gave me. Monique stepped over quickly and retrieved the digital camera, sliding open the lens cover and giving the automatic a chance to focus. She looked at the screen, and the green dot flashed. "Ready" she said.

Kim let go of Jason and stepped back out of the frame. Just as Monique said "Ready? One… two…"

Kim saw what was starting to happen, and her mouth opened in terror. She had seen that smile on the baby's faces before, and well knew what it meant. Before Kim could move, Monique said… "Three."

And both infants launched at exactly the same time.

As Monique snapped the pic, the kids had lost their lunch all over the front of the horrified blonde actress. Strained peas, carrots and mother's milk had cris-crossed the poor woman's upper body, forming a light green X across her chest. Tara stood there stunned, the wriggling barf cannons still in her arms.

Kim ran over to Tara, who was still not able to move from shock. "Oh, my GOD, Tara, I'm so SORRY" she said, while retrieving the babies from Tara's arms. Kim put the kids back in the playpen, turned back to her 'marked' friend, and exclaimed "let's get you cleaned up, NOW. I have some clothes you can change into. Come on in to the back room, and you can get cleaned up.

After they left the room, Monique checked the camera to see what was on it. Sure enough, it was a perfect shot of her and the twins at just that moment. Monique started to laugh as quietly as she should, only to hear something coming from a big green chair. She then saw Rufus hanging over the edge of the top of a big pocket, just chittering away in that delightful laugh he has. Tears were rolling down the sides of his tiny cheeks, and he was slapping the side of the pocket. Monique didn't know he could laugh that hard.

Kim stepped back into the living room, her cheeks flaming from embarrassment. Monique made eye contact with Kim's, and that's all it took.

They both doubled up and then collapsed to the floor from convulsive laughing.

End of chapter IV

MMMM, you guys are probably wondering when I'm going to get around to what's going on with the anniversary idea. I promise it's coming up soon. I just got into what was going on at the moment, and chunks of ideas kept popping up in the middle of the chappie. Life experiences, and stuff. I was going to split this chappie, but decided to clean the slate for chapter V. Being a 'beginner' writer, I hope you excuse me for this, and I hope you're enjoying the story. If y'all would be so kind, shoot me a review and let me know how ya like it, or what I could change. Thanks!

Onwards!

RD


End file.
